Minneapolis neighbors took efforts into their own hands to slow down unsafe drivers

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A north Minneapolis neighborhood doesn’t wait for help to make life better. They get together and find solutions.

"Everyone knows each other. We all talk as you saw and everyone comes out and says hello," said North Knox Avenue resident Travis Joseph.

It’s good communication that led neighbors to come up with the latest plan to stop drivers from jumping the median on a tight curve and speeding down their street.

They built up a berm and up-righted trees that had been pushed down by cars plowing through the median.

"One of my neighbors down the street around the corner actually worked for a garden center started doing this so we would just donate plants and stuff," Joseph explained.

So far, it’s worked.  Other efforts have also helped the neighborhood clean things up and stop crime when it starts. For instance, a handyman on the street helped put cameras on some homes, others installed floodlights and still others use their cell phones to record crimes in progress.

They say staying safe and having a good quality of life is all about knowing your neighbors and caring for one another. "The most important thing is to communicate with your neighbors and call each other."

And Joseph admits, "it’s a good neighborhood kind of like the ones you see on TV."